News in brief

12:01AM BST 27 Jun 2003

Brown role in Blair's new euro-Cabinet

Tony Blair yesterday announced the creation of a special euro-Cabinet that will bind Gordon Brown, the Chancellor, into a long-term Goverment campaign to prepare Britain for the currency. Mr Blair will chair the committee with Mr Brown playing a prominent role, Government insiders said yesterday.

At a press conference with Vladimir Putin, the Russian President, yesterday, Mr Blair said that he was more determined than ever for Britain to be a leading player in the Europe, including as a member of the euro.

My fault, admits Rusedski fan

The Wimbledon spectator whose cry of "out" led to Greg Rusedski's foul-mouthed tirade against the umpire offered to pay his £1,500 fine last night.

Rusedski believed the call from Zilioni Ivaldes, an accountant, came from the line judge. But his opponent, Andy Roddick, won the point and went on to claim victory. Mr Ivaldes, 29, who is from Lithuania and now lives in Kingston, Surrey, said: "If Greg calls me, I will pay his fine. Words cannot describe how I feel. I'm unbelievably guilty. I won't do it again."

Rebel Unionists face expulsion

David Trimble, the party leader, called for a "period of reflection" from Jeffrey Donaldson, the Rev Martin Smyth and David Burnside.

At a meeting of party officers it was agreed to set up a disciplinary committee. Mr Trimble believes it is impossible for Mr Smyth to remain as party president and Mr Donaldson as a vice-president after refusing to follow party orders at Westminster.

As well as stripping the rebels of these posts, the committee will consider whether the MPs should be suspended or expelled.

'No scapegoat' over royal party

No police officer will be singled out for blame in the inquiry into the security breach at Prince William's 21st birthday party, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir John Stevens, indicated yesterday.

"When you are looking at something which has been a failure in totality like this it would be wrong to pick on any individual," he told the Metropolitan Police Authority. The party was gate-crashed by the comedian Aaron Barschak in an Osama bin Laden disguise.

Fall in child road deaths

The number of children killed on the roads fell to its lowest level for two decades last year, a drop hailed by campaigners as evidence of the value of speed cameras and traffic calming.

Compared with 2001, the death toll among under-15s fell by nearly a fifth to 179, despite a three per cent increase in traffic. The total of seriously injured children declined seven per cent to just over 4,400.

Kevin Clinton, of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, said: "Some people complain about safety cameras and traffic humps, but figures like these show that they work."

Early start for festival revellers

Europe's biggest annual music festival threatened to get bigger yesterday as a record number of revellers pitched up early for the Glastonbury Festival weekend.

More than 70,000 music lovers were already safely in their tents on the 800-acre site in Somerset last night on the eve of the official opening of the event. Nearly 50,000 of them had even turned up the day before.

But despite the early start organisers insisted everything was in control and thanks to a £1 million steel perimeter fence only ticket holders had gained entry to the site.

This year's event, which is being billed as the most organised and safest since the festival began, has sold 112,500 tickets at £105 each.

Paper pays price of appeal

"Unnecessary" legal action to obtain "obvious" results has resulted in the Guardian paying the costs of the Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, in bringing an appeal to the House of Lords. Alan Rusbridger, the paper's editor, and Polly Toynbee, a writer, had claimed they feared they might be prosecuted under the Treason Felony Act 1848 if they advocated the peaceful overthrow of the monarchy. Lord Scott, one of five law lords, said it was "as plain as a pikestaff" that there was no risk of prosecution.